A survey by Cybereason found that 80% of business that chose to pay a ransom demand in a ransomware attack suffered a second ransomware attack, often by the same group.
The survey — which included nearly 1,300 security professionals — also found that among companies that opted to pay ransoms, 46% reported that some or all of their data was corrupted during the recovery process.
“Ransomware attacks are a major concern for organizations across the globe, often causing massive business disruptions including the loss of income and valuable human resources as a direct result,” said Lior Div, CEO and co-founder of Cybereason.
Other findings in the survey included:
- 66% of organization reported significant loss of revenue following a ransomware attack.
- 32% of organization reported losing C-level talent as a direct result of ransomware attacks.
- 29% reported being forced to lay off employees because of financial pressure following an attack.
- 26% reported the attack resulted in business closures for periods of time.
- 35% paid a ransom demand of between $350,000 and $1.4 million, and 7% paid ransoms exceeding $1.4 million.
Cybereason is a cybersecurity technology company based in Boston.